Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 launching March say sources

Samsung will follow up the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 with an 8.9-inch version in the coming months, sources are claiming.

Yonhapnews.co.kr, a Korean website, is reporting that Samsung “will release an 8.9-inch tablet computer built on an Android system during the first half of this year,” before adding that:

“The 8.9-inch tablet will be released in the global market through mobile operators, a company spokesman said by phone, without disclosing further details or launching dates. Local media reported that the 8.9-inch tablet could hit shelves as early as next month.”

The news comes just days after Samsung revealed to Pocket-lint that it will be releasing future tablets in a variety of different screen sizes, although it believes that its latest device, the Galaxy Tab 10.1, is the ideal size for the technology.

It has also hinted that the mid-range of screen sizes could, in the future, be filled by other devices - media players or mobile phones - rather than tablets.

In an exclusive briefing at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, with Pocket-lint in attendance, Samsung Mobile executive Dr WP Hong said that while he couldn't offer confirmation on screen sizes per se, he could give an indication that the company is looking beyond the 7- and 10.1-inches that already exist in the range.

The executive vice president and head of product strategy of Samsung’s Mobile Communication’s Business said that, as well as the Galaxy Tab 10.1, there will definitely be further tablet launches in 2011: "We will launch a portfolio... We already launched a 7-inch last year, but there will be some more."